Bloggernacle Back Bench: Luck o' the blogs

Shamrocks and leprechauns, luck and green: St. Patrick’s Day arrives this week, and the crafty bloggers have creative ideas to make it fun for your family. And what happens when you mix missionaries with leprechauns? Plus, read about a tricky little dog who decided to help with missionary work.

Green crafts: The Crafting Chicks are so excited about St. Patrick’s Day, if this list of cute crafts is any indication. Make St. Patrick’s Day-themed treasure hunts, or treats, or games, or even traps for leprechauns. So cute! And, I’ve been saving this blog for the past month, and for good reason: Just look at how darling this “Free St. Patrick’s Day Subway Art” is. And free! This same blogger has a whole pot of “Free St. Patrick’s Day Printables” for you and your family to enjoy.

Mission luck: OK, so what do you get when missionaries capture a leprechaun? A little missionary wit that meshes humorously in this latest installment from the Mormon Cartoonist.

And speaking of missionary work, I just loved the story of “A Doggie Would A-Tractin’ Go,” about a little dog who decided to do a little missionary work himself and, as the story is told: “One morning, unseen by the inhabitants of the mission home, a dog made his way onto the porch, where he found a copy of an LDS hymn book. Taking it in his mouth, he left the Mormon building and trotted down the street and up onto the porch of a Presbyterian family. Laying the hymnal at their door, the dog trotted back up the street to the mission home. This time he found a copy of the Improvement Era, which he carried up the street to the home of a Methodist family. He left the magazine at their door, and returned again to the mission home. On his third visit, he mouthed a copy of the missionary magazine The Liahona, and off he went. This time, it was a Baptist family who received delivery.” Click in to read the rest of this historical vignette from Keepapitchinin that is sure to bring a smile to your face.

Now let me find other lucky blogs from this last week in the Bloggernacle:

Power pick: I know there has been a lot said about baptism for the dead lately, but the newest from Terryl Givens is said so very well. Here’s his conclusion: “The effect of posthumous baptisms is not conversion; only a personal, conscious decision to accept the baptismal covenant, in this life or the next, constitutes conversion. The intention is to provide an opportunity for participation in that 'whole and complete and perfect union' of the human family. Certainly the scheme reflects a Mormon vision of the eternities, and many are not happy to be put on a guest list for a party they have no intention of attending. Others, on the other hand, can appreciate the motive if not the substance associated with the ordinance. Krister Stendahl, The Lutheran Bishop of Stockholm and dean of Harvard Divinity School, expressed 'holy envy' for a practice so conspicuously rooted in love for one’s ancestors. He recognized in this practice, with its hints of ancient origins, acts of devotion performed across a veil of silence, a reaching after our dead in the hope of uniting them to us. And it is these personal ancestors, not celebrities, holocaust survivors or anybody else, who are the appropriate objects of proxy baptism, as the LDS Church has repeatedly affirmed.” Please click in to read his entire essay on “The Heavenly Logic of Proxy Baptism.”

Techie tip: With St. Patrick’s Day soon to be behind us, the focus shifts to the next important holiday: Easter. And in honor of Easter this year, the Bible Videos site is releasing videos each Friday until Easter. Check out LDS Media Talk for a full list of the videos already released as well as a teaser of the ones to be released in the coming weeks. Plus, have you seen the latest two videos “The Last Supper” and “Jesus Warns Peter and Offers the Intercessory Prayer”? And remember that you can send any of these videos as e-cards to your friends. Enjoy!

Emily Warburton Jensen loves searching through the LDS blog world for developments and testimonies that best capture the ever-evolving LDS online experience. Email: ejensen@desnews.com